Strategic Command Classic: Global Conflict
The Matrix version is the Gold Edition of the original and includes the the two DLCs “Assault on Communism” and “Assault on Democracy”.
Players will be able to wage World War II across the massive expanse of the entire planet. From battles in Europe and North Africa all the way to Asia and the Pacific, Global Conflict features a very huge map (16896 tiles, or 256×64), but in fact it allows players to create maps of up to 131,072 () tiles (512×256) in the map editor!
Command the forces of 6 major and 58 different minor nations whose armies and navies include 20 different unique unit types, each with up to 30 different characteristics and stats. Over 200 different in-game events are now depicted as well as over 50 different decision events that guarantee a unique experience each time the game is played, including:
- Would you as the British Government so desperately need Destroyers against German U-Boats that you would give several naval bases to the USA?
- Could Franco be convinced to join the Axis if enough monetary and territorial concessions were offered?
- Would you as the Allies work to support and finance a coup in Yugoslavia to break its inclusion within the Axis Tripartite Pact? Would it be worth the effort and cost?
- How should Japan react to the crippling US embargo depriving it of its much needed resources to carry on her war with China?
- and much, much more…
As with all of the previous Strategic Command games, WWII Global Conflict comes with a full Game Editor that allows you to modify or create your own all new scenarios, campaigns and maps. To assist with that, the full range of terrain tile types and resources are available including Western, European, Asian, Tropical and Pacific Island themed villages, cities, capitals, jungles, mountains, marsh and hills.
When you grow tired of playing against the award winning AI, full multiplayer support is included for Hotseat, E-Mail and Network play.
Features
- Command the forces of 6 major and 58 different minor nations
- 20 different unique unit types
- Powerful Editor
- Play Singleplayer against the challenging AI or take your chance in thrilling PBEM sessions!
- Over 200 different in-game events
- 50 different decision events
Steam User 5
I love this game. I also hate this game.
As a wargaming veteran, I can appreciate that this game isn't overly complex and can be played a bit more casually. In that it's kind of nice having a "Tank Group" rather than getting lost in the details of whether to choose between a Panzer II or Stug III or whatever. That's better suited for other games. There are a lot of different scenarios (more so than the newer version) making for a lot of replay. I also like the isometric map more than the flat newer version.
There are some balance issues. The AI can be sadistic and the RNG at times, totally sucks. I swear that Barbarossa campaign is impossible as the Germans. I've played this scenario more than any of the others. I've tried a different strategy each time and the result is always the same. For some reason "Army Group South" (there's no designation between army groups, I'm just using that as a reference for area) has absolutely no armor. The Romanians, Bulgarians, and Italians are completely useless. I can't ever do as well as the Germans did historically. They reached Leningrad in Sept '41. Which seems totally impossible in game. I get that one would need to blitz their way straight there, but there's not enough time. If you haven't done as well historically by the onset of Winter it's basically game over. By November, the Soviet's will spam a ridiculous amount of divisions (the mid-tier infantry level that has no apparent limit). Once that happens there is no point in continuing.
tl;dr - Fun game, balancing issues with some scenarios.
Steam User 1
I played this a lot 10+ years ago and recently found it again on Steam (it's a game from a small company that I bought direct back in the day). Not a flashy interface like some newer games, but a great way to "what if" a variety of WW2 alternatives. Want to execute OP Sealion or repudiate the Molotov-Ribbentrop treaty? These and many other paths can be taken as either the Allies or Axis. Do be prepared to invest a lot of time, as you won't get through 6 years of war in one sitting.
It's a lot of mouse work, and I suggest setting the animations and combats to "quick" as it speeds things up a lot. This is a turn-based game and you can play it against someone else but I've never tried it. The AI has a number of difficulty ratings and gives a decent challenge.
It is definitely "strategic" as the smallest units are corps or equivalent. This is that old Third Reich board game you and your (Gen X) friends tried to play in high school, without the annoying setup or risk of the cat knocking your counters around. I'm not sure if people too young for that era of gaming will appreciate this as much, but if depth is more important to your game play this may be worth your time.